Kentucky, Arizona, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Kansas advance in conference tourneys; Bobby Portis Leads Arkansas in SEC

Conference Tournament Highlights and

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, April 13, 2015

There was enough college hoops action Friday night to fill up the entire weekend, what with 19 conference tournaments in various stages of elimination. 14 tourneys wrap up on Saturday, plus the Ivy League will decide its representative for the NCAA Championship when Yale meet Harvard in a one-game playoff at 4:00 pm EDT in Philadelphia.

Sunday, five more conferences - American, Atlantic 10, Big Ten, SEC, and Sun Belt - will crown champions, leading up to the selection committee announcements of the at-large bids and overall seedings in the four regions, beginning at 6:00 pm EDT.

Highlights from Friday's games include:

#1 Kentucky advancing to the semi-final in the SEC with a 64-49 win over Florida, where they face Auburn, Saturday, at 1:00 pm EDT.

On the other side of the bracket, Georgia topped South Carolina, 74-62, while Arkansas eliminated Tennessee, 80-72, and will meet the Bulldogs in a semi-final match-up Saturday, at 3:00 pm EDT. In their victory, forward Bobby Portis put up player of the day numbers, scoring a game-high 26 points on 8-for-13 shooting, going 9-for-10 from the foul line, and was the game's top rebounder, with 11. Despite being out-boarded, 41-31, the Razorbacks made up for that deficiency with hounding defense, holding the Vols to just 33% shooting.

A 6'11" sophomore, Portis posted his 12th double double of the season and added a pair of assists, two steals, and a blocked shot. In their only meeting of the season, Arkansas won, 79-75, at Georgia, on January 6.

The ACC has settled on the combatants for their final, as North Carolina ousted top-seeded Virginia, 71-67, and Notre Dame handled #2 seed (and #2 nationally), Duke, 74-64.

The Tar Heels and Irish square off Saturday night, at 8:30 pm EDT.

In the PAC-12, Arizona ousted UCLA, 70-64, advancing to the final, where they will meet Oregon, a 76-64 winner over a resolute Utah squad, 67-64, on Joseph Young's 25 points and buzzer-beating three-pointer. The PAC-12 final is scheduled for 8:00 pm PDT.

The Big Ten semi-finals start at 1:00 pm EDT on Saturday, when Wisconsin battles Purdue, followed by a 3:30 meeting between Michigan State and Maryland.

In the Big 12, #13 Iowa State meets #9 Kansas in the final at 6:00 pm EDT.

CBD's Conference Champion Scoreboard will be updated in Saturday night's post, along with results and highlights.

UCLA Looking for At-Large Bid after Isaac Hamilton's Career High 36 Leads the Bruins past USC

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, March 12, 2015

Arizona is the only team from the PAC-12 that is ranked, but it's a good bet that the conference will send at least four teams to the NCAA tournament, and the UCLA Bruins, by virtue of their 96-70 trouncing of cross-town rival USC in the opening round of the conference tourney, are almost certain to be among that group.

If the Bruins get an at-large bid, they can thank sophomore guard, Isaac Hamilton, who scored a career-high 36 points, going 13-for-17 overall and blistering the nets with a 7-for-9 barrage from beyond the arc.

Hamilton's previous career best was 21 points, against UAB earlier this season, prior to conference play.

The 6'4" LA native averaged 10.1 points per game this season and scored in double figures 19 times prior to his performance against the Trojans.

Hamilton added four rebounds and made two steals for the Bruins, who are 20-12 overall and went 11-7 in the PAC-12.

While there was a slew of games on Thursday, no conference champions were crowned, nor will any be crowned until Saturday, when 15 teams get their tickets punched.

Lafayette Grabs Patriot League Title; Anthony "Cat" Barber Pours in 34 as NC State Eliminates Pitt from ACC Tourney

Conference Champions and College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, March 11, 2015

With the Patriot League tournament complete, there are now 12 teams which have qualified for automatic bids to the NCAA tournament, leaving 20 more to be determined by conference tournament championships, and then 32 at-large bids will be awarded on Sunday, March 15, along with four teams designated as "play-ins" for four games slated for Tuesday and Wednesday, March 17 and 18.

Those play-in teams are matched against seeded squads, making the total of 68 teams selected to take part in the annual March Madness ritual.

While many post-season tourneys are in early rounds, they will all be completed by Sunday aftenoon, the Big Ten and SEC among those closing out at the last minute. Tonight featured just one tournament final - the Patriot League - and there won't be another until Saturday, March 14, when a slew of 15 conferences will be decided. That includes the Ivy League, which normally is among the first of the conferences to announce a champion, but, because of a tie in the regular season standings between Yale and Harvard, and the fact that the Ivy doesn't hold a post-season tournament, a one-game playoff is scheduled on the 14th.

Saturday will be a huge day of college hoops action, including the finals of the Big 12, Big East, Big Sky, Conference USA, WAC and ACC.

Patriot League
Lafayette 65 American 63 - Two teams that weren't supposed to be in the Patriot League final decided which would represent the conference in the NCAA tournament. Lafayette finished 9-9 in league play, tied for fourth place, while American went 8-10 in conference play, finishing in a three-way tie for sixth place.

After a slow start, Lafayette took a first half lead and held a comfortable lead most of the way, until the Eagles began to surge midway through the second half, closing the gap and eventually grabbing a lead at 55-53 on Marko Vasic's three-point play with 5:14 remaining. That turned out to be the only second half lead for the Eagles as Seth Hinrichs and Zach Rufer hit back-to-back three-pointers for the Leopards.

American closed to within a point, at 61-60, but Nick Linder, who led all scorers with 25 points, scored four straight points on a layup and a pair of free throws. Pee Wee Gardner's three-pointer at the buzzer closed the gap back to two, but it was too late.

Lafayette heads to the tournament with a respectable record of 20-12.

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Player of the day honors go to Anthony "Cat" Barber who tallied a career-high 34 points to lead North Carolina State to an 81-70 victory over Pitt in their opening game of the ACC tournament.

Barber hit nine of 13 shots from the field, including four of five from three-point range, and nailed all 12 of his free throws. Barber also dished out five assists and gathered in three rebounds.

The win improved the Wolfpack's overall record to 20-12 and puts them in a good position to capture a at-large bid on selection Sunday. NC State went 10-8 through the ACC regular season, including a quality win over Duke, one of just three ACC teams to top the Blue Devils.

Conference Championship Scoreboard

Date/Conf. Champ.	Champion (record, defeated, final score)
March 7
Ohio Valley	Belmont (22-10, Murray State, 88-87)
March 8
Big South	Coastal Carolina (24-9, Winthop, 81-70)
Missouri Valley	Northern Iowa (29-3, Illinois, St., 69-60)
Atlantic Sun	North Florida (23-11, USC Upstate, 63-57)
March 9
Colonial	Northeastern (23-11, William & Mary, 73-61)
Metro Atlantic	Manhattan (19-13, Iona, 79-69)
Southern	Wofford (28-6, Furman, 67-64)
March 10
Horizon	Valparaiso (28-5, Green Bay, 54-44)
Northeast	Robert Morris (19-14, St. Francis BRK, 66-63)
Summit League	N. Dakota St. (23-9, S. Dakota St., 57-56)
West Coast	Gonzaga (33-2, BYU, 91-75)
March 11
Patriot League	Lafayette (20-12, American, 65-63)

Valpo, Robert Morris, Gonzaga Head for NCAA Tourney; Lawrence Alexander Leads Bison to Summit League Title

Conference Championships and College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Horizon League
Valparaiso 54 Green Bay 44 - Valparaiso is headed back to the NCAA tournament after taking care of business in the Horizon League championship, downing the Phoenix of Green Bay with a smoldering defensive effort. While the Crusaders shot just 37.5% (18-48), their counterparts from Green Bay hit only 30% of their shots from the field (16-53), including going 2-for-15 from three-point range.

Valparaiso forced 12 turnovers, blocked six shots (five by forward Vashil Fernandez) and snatched up seven steals.

The Crusaders went 13-3 in conference play and are winners of the tournament championship for the second time in three years.

Northeast
Robert Morris 66 St. Francis BRK 63 - Lucky Jones knocked down a pair of free throws with 13 seconds left to play and St. Francis Brooklyn could not respond as tine wore down, sending Robert Morris to the upset win in the Northeast conference championship game and on to the NCAA tournament with the automatic bid.

St. Francis owned the regular season with a 15-3 mark in conference play, but was denied by a gritty effort from the Robert Morris Colonials who were 8-for-16 from beyond the arc. Jones, chipped in 12 points from off the bench, adding to Rodney Prior's team-high 17 points. The Colonials had five players in double figures.

Summit League
North Dakota State 57 South Dakota State 56 - For the second straight season the Bison will represent the Summit League in the NCAA tourney, after edging South Dakota State's Jackrabbits in the conference tournament title game. Summit League player of the year, Lawrence Alexander, pumped in a game-high 25 points, making six of nine from three-point range and scoring 17 of his team's 34 points in the second half.

Both the Bison and Jackrabbits finished the regular season with 12-4 marks in the conference, so it was only fitting that the game would go down to the wire. North Dakota State kept the 'Rabbits in the game late, twice missing front ends of 1-and-1 free throw situations, but South Dakota's George Marshall and Deondre Parks each misfired on shots that would have won the game in the final seconds.

West Coast
Gonzaga 94 BYU 81 - For the 13th time, the Gonzaga Bulldogs are champions of the West Coast confrence, easily disposing of the BYU Cougars, despite a game-high 28 points by the Cougars' Kyle Collinsworth.

The win ran the Zags' record to 32-2 overall, after going 17-1 in conference play, avenging their loss to the Cougars duing the regular season. Their only other loss was a 66-63 OT setback at Arizona back on December 6. Once a so-called "Cinderella" team, Gonzaga has evolved into a national contender and could easily be the #1 seed in the West Region when the selection committee announced the seedings this Sunday.

Conference Championship Scoreboard

Date/Conf. Champ.	Champion (record, defeated, final score)
March 7
Ohio Valley	Belmont (22-10, Murray State, 88-87)
March 8
Big South	Coastal Carolina (24-9, Winthop, 81-70)
Missouri Valley	Northern Iowa (29-3, Illinois, St., 69-60)
Atlantic Sun	North Florida (23-11, USC Upstate, 63-57)
March 9
Colonial	Northeastern (23-11, William & Mary, 73-61)
Metro Atlantic	Manhattan (19-13, Iona, 79-69)
Southern	Wofford (28-6, Furman, 67-64)
March 10
Horizon	Valparaiso (28-5, Green Bay, 54-44)
Northeast	Robert Morris (19-14, St. Francis BRK, 66-63)
Summit League	N. Dakota St. (23-9, S. Dakota St., 57-56)
West Coast	Gonzaga (33-2, BYU, 91-75)
March 11
Patriot League
March 14
America East
ACC
Big 12
Big East
Big Sky
Big West
Conference USA
Ivy*
Mid-American
Mid-Eastern
Mountain West
PAC-12
Southland
Southwest Athletic
Western Athletic
March 15
American
Atlantic 10
Big Ten
SEC
Sun Belt

Northeastern, Wofford Head for the Big Dance; Emmy Andujar, Ashton Pankey Power Manhattan to MAAC Title

Conference Championships and College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, March 9, 2015

Colonial
Northeastern 71 William & Mary 62 - The Northeastern Huskies are back in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1991 after taking out William & Mary in the final of the Colonial tournament. Quincy Ford paced all scorers with 22 points, contributing four boards, three blocks and a pair of assists.

The Huskies were 23-11 for the season with a 12-6 conference mark.

Southern
Wofford 67 Furman 64 - In a game that was hotly contested from start to finish, the Wofford Terriers finally shook free of the Palladins of Furman to capture the Southern tourney title and a trip to the NCAAs. The Terriers put four players into double figures, topped by forward Lee Skinner's 17 points.

For the second straight year, Woffard will represent the Southern conference in the national championship tourney.

Metro Atlantic
Manhattan 79 Iona 69 - for the third straight season, the Manhattan Jaspers and Iona Gaels met for the MAAC tournament championship, and for the second year in a row, it was the Jaspers who got the better of it, as a couple of boys from the Bronx - Ashton Pankey and Emmy Andujar - dominated the interior and led their team to victory.

Pankey finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Andujar contributed 18 points and 11 boards. The two forwards helped Manhattan out-rebound the Gaels, 41-33, and provided heady defense throughout. Pankey had a pair of blocked shots. Andujar had two steals.

The game was close until the final stages, when it was tied at 60-60, with 7:01 to play. Manhattan used a 13-4 run over the next 3:56 to establish an unassailable lead.

NOTE: ESPN's Joe Lunardi had Iona penciled in as a #12 seed out of the MAAC, so, ya know, screw Joe Lunardi and his "bracketology." Remember, analyst starts with "anal."

Who's In? Conference Champions

Date/Conf. Champ.	Champion (record, defeated, final score)
March 7
Ohio Valley	Belmont (22-10, Murray State, 88-87)
March 8
Big South	Coastal Carolina (24-9, Winthop, 81-70)
Missouri Valley	Northern Iowa (29-3, Illinois, St., 69-60)
Atlantic Sun	North Florida (23-11, USC Upstate, 63-57)
March 9
Colonial	Northeastern (23-11, William & Mary, 73-61)
Metro Atlantic	Manhattan (19-13, Iona, 79-69)
Southern	Wofford (28-6, Furman, 67-64)
March 10
Horizon
Northeast
Summit League
West Coast
March 11
Patriot League
March 14
America East
ACC
Big 12
Big East
Big Sky
Big West
Conference USA
Ivy*
Mid-American
Mid-Eastern
Mountain West
PAC-12
Southland
Southwest Athletic
Western Athletic
March 15
American
Atlantic 10
Big Ten
SEC
Sun Belt

Seth Tuttle Leads Northern Iowa to MVC Title; Coastal Carolina, North Florida also in Tourney

Conference Championship Results and College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 8, 2015
Big South
Coastal Carolina 81 Winthrop 70 - Led by Warren Gillis' 22 points, the Chanticleers punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament winning the Big South tourney with a convincing, 81-70, victory over Winthrop. Gillis added six assists and three rebounds. Coastal Carolina hit 42% from three-point range, making nine of 22 attempts.

Missouri Valley
Northern Iowa 69 Illinois St. 60 - The Northern Iowa Panthers knew they would be in for a tussle, as the Redbirds of Illinois State had already knocked off Wichita State in the semi-final on Saturday, but they failed to respond until the second half, as the two teams went to the locker rooms with Illinois State ahead by a healthy, 36-22, score.

The Panthers came out flying in the second half, however, going on a 25-4 run to open the second twenty minutes, eventually taking the lead at 41-40, and expanding it to 47-40 before the Redbirds were able to respond. Illinois State re-tied the game with a 7-0 run, but Northern Iowa showed their class and poise down the stretch, outscoring their opponents 22-13 for the win.

Nate Buss and Seth Tuttle each paced the Panthers with 15 points, but Tuttle contributed nine rebounds, three assists and a steal.

Atlantic Sun
North Florida 63 South Carolina Upstate 57 - The Ospreys of North Florida will be dancing for the first time in March, after capturing the Atlantic Sun title game with a 63-57 win over a resolute squad from South Carolina Upstate. Trailing 34-25 at the half, USC Upstate rallied and made a game of it, but in the end the Ospreys were too much and too generous with each other, sharing 11 assists. North Florida's Demarcus Daniels led all scorers with 22 points.

Conference Tournament Scoreboard (updated as results arrive)

Date/Conference	Champion (record, defeated, final score)
March 7
Ohio Valley	Belmont (22-10, Murray State, 88-87)
March 8
Big South	Coastal Carolina (24-9, Winthop, 81-70)
Missouri Valley	Northern Iowa (29-3, Illinois, St., 69-60)
Atlantic Sun	North Florida (23-11, USC Upstate, 63-57)
March 9
Colonial
Metro Atlantic
Southern
March 10
Horizon
Northeast
Summit League
West Coast
March 11
Patriot League
March 14
America East
ACC
Big 12
Big East
Big Sky
Big West
Conference USA
Ivy*
Mid-American
Mid-Eastern
Mountain West
PAC-12
Southland
Southwest Athletic
Western Athletic
March 15
American
Atlantic 10
Big Ten
SEC
Sun Belt

* No tourney, Playoff game: Harvard v. Yale, March 14

Craig Bradshaw's 25 Points Propels Belmont to Ohio Valley Tourney Victory, Advance to the Dance; Yale Falls Short in Ivy

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 7, 2015

What a weekend of college hoops!

Only one of two potential dance tickets were punched on Saturday, and the fancy stepping will be done by the Belmont Bruins, who shocked the Murray State Racers in a shoot-out for the Ohio Valley Conference tournament title with an 88-87 thriller, earning themselves a trip to the NCAA championship tournament.

Craig Bradshaw led the Bruins with 25 points on 10-for-17 shooting, including five threes.

The game saw multiple ties and lead changes and a plethora of big plays and three pointers. The top two scoring teams in the conference combined for 26 bombs from beyond the arc.

It was the second time in three seasons that Belmont has knocked off the Racers in the conference tourney final.

Murray State went 16-0 through the regular season Ohio Valley schedule, but were tripped up by a perennial tournament-tested team.

It will be up to the selection committee to determine whether the Racers' record of 27-5 - and, prior to Saturday's defeat, a string of 25 straight wins - is worthy enough for inclusion into the NCAA tournament field. Selection Sunday is March 15.

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After winning at Harvard, 62-52, Friday night, all the Yale Bulldogs had to do was win at Dartmouth and a ticket to the NCAA tournament would be in their hands.

Despite shooting 62 percent in the first half against the Big Green, the Bulldogs turned the ball over 11 times and could only claim a one-point lead, at the break, 30-29. Their struggles continued in the second half, unable to pull away, and eventually losing on a last-second layup by Gabas Maldunas, resulting in a 59-58 Dartmouth, which forces a playoff game between the two top teams in the conference, Harvard and Yale.

Harvard ran their record to 11-3 in the conference with a 72-62 win over Brown

The playoff game will be played on Saturday, March 14 at Penn, a neutral site in Philadelphia. The winner gets the automatic bid. Harvard has won or tied for the Ivy League title five years running.

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Saturday Hoops Highlights:

Kentucky completed a perfect regular season with a routine, 67-50, victory over an out-gunned Florida Gators team. The win was the 31st straight for the Wildcats and completed an 18-0 mark in the SEC. Next up for the Wildcats is the SEC Tournament which begins Wednesday, March 11, in Nshville, TN.

#16 Louisville topped #2 Virginia, 59-57, handing the Cavaliers just their second loss of the season. Both teams are looking forward to the ACC tournament, starting on Tuesday, March 10, at Greensboro, NC.

Led by Tyus Jones' 25 points and eight assists, Duke dominated the second half - scoring 53 points - to defeat the North Carolina Tar Heels for the second time this season, 84-77.

Eighth-ranked Wichita State was unceremoniously bounced from the Missouri Valley conference tournament in a 65-62 win by Illinois State, leaving the tourney title wide open for Northern Iowa, an easy, 63-49 victor over Loyola (IL). The Redbirds (21-11, 11-7 MVC) could steal a bid with a win over Northern Iowa in the final, slated for Sunday at 2:05 pm ET.

With one conference tourney complete (Ohio Valley) and the Ivy to be determined by a playoff game next Saturday, that leaves 30 conference tournaments to be decided over the next eight days and nights, resulting in a total of 32 automatic bids to the NCAA tournament. College Basketball Daily will feature expanded coverage as the hoops bonanza goes ballistic.

Jarvis Williams, Cameron Payne Lead Murray State past Morehead State, into Ohio Valley Final

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, March 6, 2015

The Ohio Valley conference flies under the radar most of the season, until some team in March has to come up against the likes of Murray State, which went through the conference schedule like a well-sharpened blade, going 16-0 to capture the regular season title.

Friday night found the Racers in a struggle with Morehead State, eventually prevailing in the semi-final game at Nashville, 80-77.

The inside-outside combination of Jarvis Williams and Cameron Payne proved critical throughout the contest and down the stretch, securing the win and an advance to the final, against Belmont, which barely escaped with a 53-52 win over Eastern Kentucky in the other semi-final.

Williams scored 23 points and ripped down 10 boards, while Payne led all scorers with 25 and rounded out his game with four rebounds, four assists, three steals and a pair of blocked shots.

In the final minutes of the game both players came to the fore. With a dunk at 1:45, Williams tied the game at 75, and Payne's three-pointer at 0:56 put the Racers up, 78-77. T.J. Sapp canned a pair of free throws as the Eagles could not produce another score.

Murray State will have to rest up quickly if they plan on securing their ticket to the Big Dance. The final against Belmont is scheduled for Saturday night at 7:00 pm.

Other than Kentucky, no team in the country has more consecutive wins than the 25th-ranked Eagles, currently holding at 25 straight.

Utah's Late Surge Secures Win at Washington State; Delon Wright Has 18 Points, 8 Boards, and 8 Assists

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, March 5, 2015

While Wisconsin was wrapping up the Big Ten title and Arizona did the same in the PAC-12, #13 Utah continued to roll along, breaking open a tight contest with a late second half surge en route to a 67-59 decision at Washington State.

Delon Wright, who was on the floor for all but one minute of the game, had one of his best all-around performances, scoring 18 points on 4-for-6 shooting and an 8-for-8 effort from the foul line. In addition, the 6'5' senior from Los Angeles whipped eight assists, hauled in eight rebounds, blocked two shots, and registered a steal.

The Utes and Cougars were tied at 23-all at the break, but Utah fell behind by as many as eight points in the second half and didn't take the lead for good until Brandon Taylor's 3-pointer with 4:57 left. Down the stretch, Wright canned six straight free throws to keep Washington State at Bay.

Utah improved to 23-6 overall, 13-4 in the conference. The Utes close out the regular season Saturday at Washington.

D'Angelo Russell Scores 28 as Thad Matta Ties Buckeye Win Record

College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Head coach Thad Matta ties a Buckeye record with his 297th win, as Ohio State improved to 22-8 (11-6 Big Ten) with a 77-67 win at Penn State.

In 11 seasons as the Ohio State coach, Matta has posted just 91 losses. Three short of 300, he's tied currently with Fred Taylor as the all-time win leader at the school. On Sunday, the Buckeyes face off with Wisconsin; a win over the Badgers would be Matta's 400th career victory. He also won 24 games at Butler and 78 at Xavier.

Matta's Ohio State teams have averaged 26.9 victories per season.

Freshman D'Angelo Russell led all scorers with 28 points for the Buckeyes, adding six boards, three assists and three thefts. Russell was 8-for-16 from the field, hitting on five of eight from beyond the arc.

Karl-Anthony Towns Leads Kentucky to 30-0 in 72-64 Win at Georgia

College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Kentucky deserves a load of credit in its run to 30-0, as there have not been many walk-over games throughout their run in the SEC.

Tuesday night's trip to Athens, Georgia was certainly no exception, as the Bulldogs battled with all their might in an to topple the #1 ranked team in the nation.

While Georgia led much of the game, the Wildcats, having gotten used to coming from behind in the second half of games, surged in the contest's later stages, coming away with win #30, a 72-64 victory.

Trailing by nine points with nine minutes left to play, Andrew Harrison's three-pointer sparked the long run back to parity, which occurred with 3:54 left to play, when brother Aaron Harrison dropped in a shot jumper to tie the game at 62-all.

From there, the Wildcats held Georgia to just one field goal, while scoring 10 points for the win.

Forward Karl-Anthony Towns led the way for Kentucky with 19 points on 8 for 12 shooting and seven rebounds.

Despite being out-rebounded, 41-38 and shooting only 39.7%, the Wildcats relied on ball control (just three turnovers) and defense, forcing 11 turnovers with four blocked shots and five steals.

Iowa State Rips Oklahoma with Second Half Surge Keyed by Georges Niang

College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, March 2, 2015

Charles Dickens might have enjoyed this.

"It was the best of halves; it was the worst of halves."

Oklahoma stormed to a 37-18 lead at half time of their game at Iowa State, but the Cyclones got their second wind - ad more - in the final twenty minutes, blitzing the Sooners, 59-33 in the second stanza, for the eventual, 77-70, victory.

Georges Niang scored 20 of his 23 points to lead Iowa State to a tie for second place in the Big 12 with Oklahoma. The outcome of the game left the two teams with identical, 11-6, conference marks. Niang was 8-for-14 from the field, including 2-for-3 from beyond the arc and a 5-for-5 level from the foul line. He also accounted for 8 boards, four assists and a steal.

Oklahoma's Buddy Hield led all scorers with 26 points.

The Sooners travel to Kansas to meet the #9 Jayhawks in their final regular season game on March 7. Kansas currently holds first place in the conference with a 12-4 record.

Iowa State closes out their regular season at TCU on Saturday.

Frank Kaminsky's 31 Points Powers Wisconsin past Michigan State to Share of Big Ten Crown

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 1, 2015

It's no secret that the Wisconsin Badgers are odds-on to win the regular season title in the Big Ten. Sunday's 68-61 win over a struggling Michigan State squad earned the Badgers a share of the title, with remaining games on the road, at Minnesota and Ohio State. A win in either of those, or a loss by Maryland, would secure the championship.

Frank Kominsky's 31 points and eight rebounds helped secure the win over Michigan State. Kaminsky, widely regarded as a bona fide player of the year candidate, added two assists, three steals and three blocked shots, an impressive performance as the Badgers regained their winning ways after last week's 59-53 loss at Maryland, which snapped a ten-game winning streak.

The victory moved #5 Wisconsin to 26-3 overall with a 14-2 mark in conference play. The Spartans fell to 19-10 with a 10-6 mark in the Big Ten, a precarious position for a perennial NCAA tourney participant.

Conference tournaments commence within days, though the Big Ten will be one of the later affairs, beginning mid-next week.

Selection Sunday is just two weeks off, on March 15.

Perry Ellis Leads #8 Jayhawks over Longhorns, Maintains 1st Place in Big 12

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, February 28, 2015

While Buddy Hield's double-double (21 pts., 13 rebs.) was leading Oklahoma to a 67-60 home win over TCU, the Kansas Jaywahks tightened their grip on the top spot in the Big 12 with a 69-64, come-from-behind win over visiting Texas.

Junior Perry Ellis kept the Jayhawks' a game ahead of the Sooners in the standings with a double-double of his own, scoring 28 points with 13 boards. Ellis wasn't especially sharp, but he kept shooting, hitting 9 of 21 shots from the field, and canned 10 of 12 free throws.

Ellis matched his season high in rebounds while setting a new season-high in scoring. He also blocked three shots and dished an assist in 38 minutes of playing time.

Kansas still has its hands full in its quest for the perennial Big 12 title. They face #20 West Virginia at home on March 3, and finish up the regular season at Oklahoma on March 7. The Jayhawks were upset, 62-61, by the Mountaineers back on February 16 and have a win in hand over Oklahoma, defeating the Sooners, 85-78, January 19.

Kansas stands at 12-4 in the conference. Oklahoma has a mark of 11-5. West Virginia, Baylor and Iowa State are tied for third place at 10-6, so the conference title remains largely up for grabs, setting the stage for one of the more contentious Big 12 tournaments in years.

On Justin Sears' 28 and 12, Yale Pummels Princeton, Ties Harvard in Ivy; Showdown Looms

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, February 27, 2015

Justin Sears has been getting it done for the Bulldogs all season long, and on Friday night equalled a career-high with 28 points on 11 of 15 shooting in Yale's 81-60 victory over visiting Princeton.

Playing all but two minutes, Sears hauled in 12 boards, had two assists, two blocked shots and three steals. His 6-for-8 effort from the foul line included the only two misses from the stripe for the Bulldogs, which canned 26 of 28 free throws as a team.

The victory put Yale at 9-2 on the season, tying them with Harvard for the top spot in the Ivy league. The winner of the Ivy gets an automatic invitation to the NCAA tourney, so the March 6 meeting (next Friday night) between the Crimson and the Bulldogs at Harvard will likely determine the Ivy's representative.

Yale will be looking to avenge a 52-50 loss to Harvard, handed to them on their home court back on February 7. Sears had one of his worst games of the season in that contest, scoring just nine points on 2-for-7 shooting.

NOTES: Some big-time games are on the slate for Saturday. Take a look at these treats (all times Eastern):

• Noon: Michigan at (14) Maryland (ESPN)
• 2:00 pm: (15) North Carolina at Miami (CBS)
• 2:00 pm: (10) Northern Iowa at (11) Wichita St. (ESPN)
• 4:00 pm: (18) Arkansas at (1) Kentucky (CBS)
• 4:00 pm: Virginia Tech at (2) Virginia
• 4:00 pm: (20) West Virginia at (19) Baylor

Wofford Wraps Up Southern with 76-72 Win over Mercer; Spencer Collins Splashes in 26

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, February 26, 2015

With their 76-72 victory at Mercer, the Wofford Terriers captured the Southern conference title and secured the top seed in the upcoming conference tournament.

Spencer Collins led the way with a season-high 26 points, topping all scorers with 7-for-11 shooting, including four of six on three-pointers. The 6'4" junior guard from Easley, SC also canned eight of nine from the foul line.

Wofford was 24-for-44 from the field (54.5%) and nailed nine of 18 from three-point range.

The Southern crown is the third for the 24-6 Terriers, who improved to 15-2 in conference play. They close out the regular season on Saturday at Furman, in Greenville, SC.

Xavier Rathan-Mayes Goes for 35, But Seminoles Fall Short; Hopeful Hurricanes

College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, February 25, 2015

In a heroic effort, freshman guard, Xavier Rathan-Mayes, scored 30 points in the final 4:38, but the Florida State Seminoles still fell to Miami, 81-77.

Rathan-Mayes scored 26 straight points for the Seminoles without missing a shot, as they rallied furiously against the 'Canes. The freshman was 8-for-10 in the final five minutes, pumping in six threes. He finished with 35 points, tying his career high.

Florida State's loss, their second straight, left them with a record of 15-14 (7-9 in the ACC) and more than likely out of the NCAA tournament. The Seminoles lost to Virginia, 51-41, on Sunday.

For Miami, hopes for an at-large invitation still seem a possibility, with their third win in their last four games. The Hurricanes stand at 18-10, with an 8-7 mark in the conference. Their remaining schedule has them hosting North Carolina on Saturday, then they take to the road for their final two, at Pitt (March 4) and Virginia Tech, March 7. Wins in two of three would - considering a good showing in the ACC tournament - give them a fighting chance at a bid.

Dez Wells Flashes, Melo Trimble Finishes as Maryland Socks Wisconsin; Stamps Tourney Ticket

College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, February 24, 2012

The Maryland Terrapins, already a sure bet to make the NCAA Tournament as a high seed with their 22-5 record going into their home game against the Wisconsin Badgers, upped their profile at an opportune time with a signature 59-52 victory at the XFINITY Center in College Park, Maryland.

Dez Wells kept the pressure on the #5 Badgers throughout, scoring a game-high 26 points on 9-for-17 shooting, adding a perfect s7-for-7 from the foul line with seven rebounds and four assists. Freshman sensation, Melo Trimble, scored the Terps' final six points to close out the Badgers, leaders of the Big Ten conference. Trimble finished with 16 points, four boards and a pair of assists.

Maryland took an early 8-7 lead and expanded it to 11 points, the margin by which they led at the half, 31-20.

The win was the fourth straight for the Terrapins, who improved to 11-4 in the conference, good for second place behind the 13-2 Badgers, who lost for the first time in their last 11 games. Ironically, the last time the Badgers faced defeat, it was at Rutgers, who, like the Terrapins, are in their initial season as a member of the Big Ten.

Trimble and Wells were the only Maryland players in double figures. Frank Kaminsky led the Badgers with 18 points.

Maryland shot 48% from the field, compared to Wisconsin's sub-par 38.5%. The Terps also had the edge at the foul line, where they were 9-for-11. Wisconsin was an uncharacteristic 7-for-12 from the stripe.

Shabazz Napier Leads Connecticut to 2nd NCAA Title in Four Years, Drops Kentucky, 60-54

College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, April 7, 2014

Shabazz Napier scored a game-high 22 points and was named tournament Most Outstanding Player, leading the Connecticut Huskies to the Men's Basketball Championship with a 60-54 victory over the youthful Kentucky Wildcats.

Kentucky, down as many as 15 points in the first half, closed the gap to within one, but never led in the game.

Napier was 8-for-16 overall, hitting four of six from three-point land and 2-for-2 from the stripe. He added three rebounds and three steals, dominating the Kentucky backcourt of freshmen guards, Aaron and Andrew Harrison who were a combined 6-for-16 and committed seven turnovers.

The real star of the game, however, was the rim, whenever Kentucky was shooting free throws, because that was the decisive statistic of the game. While the Huskies were 10-for-10 at the foul line, the Wildcats were a woeful 13-for-24, a miserable 54%, many of their misses coming in key situations.

Thus, the national championship belongs to Connecticut for the second time in four years. Napier and fellow senior, Niels Giffey, were a part of both championship teams.

The tournament is over and so its this blog, ending seven years of collage hoops coverage. It's on to other pursuits for me. I'll be the guy in the bleachers with a cold beer and the St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap.

-- Fearless Rick

Shabazz Napier Leads Huskies to Final Four; Kentucky Also Advances

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 30, 2014

As he's been doing for the better part of the season, Shabazz Napier put the UConn Huskies on his back and mushed his team to another important victory, this one over the Michigan State Spartans for a trip to the Final Four in Dallas with a 60-54 victory.

With a game-high 25 points, Napier scored the key buckets and made big plays in the final minutes to lead his squad to their biggest win of the year and a rematch with the Florida Gators in a national semi-final on Saturday.

Napier was just 6-for-14 from the field, but that included a 4-for-9 mark from three point range and perfection at the foul line where he made all nine of his free throws. The senior point guard also grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists.

Up 51-49 with under two minutes to play, Napier put the Huskies - the 11 seed in the East region - up by four with a short jumper and, after Michigan State's Adreian Payne scored a pair of free throws, Napier was fouled attempting a three-pointer with 30 seconds to go and calmly stepped to the line and sank all three foul shots for a five point UConn lead.

Michigan State missed a three-point attempt and Napier fed Phillip Nolan for a dunk with 15 seconds left which sealed the victory.

The Huskies will face Florida on Saturday, meeting the Gators for the first time since December 2 when they beat the Gators, 65-64. Since then, Florida has run off 30 straight wins and enter the Final Four as the #1 seed from the South region.

The last spot in the Final Four was completed in rousing fashion late Saturday afternoon as Kentucky upset Michigan in the Midwest region final, 75-72. Kentucky, the #8 seed in the region got a clutch performance from Aaron Harrison, who hit four three-pointers in the final eight minutes, the last one coming with just three seconds in the game, breaking a 72-all tie and sending the Wildcats to a Final Four meeting with Wisconsin.

Frank Kaminsky Powers Wisconsin Past Arizona into Final Four; Florida Forward over Dayton

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 29, 2014

In the end, basketball is a team sport, but it really helps your chances of winning when you have a seven-footer who can score nearly half of your team's points in big games.

That's the nature of Wisconsin and its star center, Frank Kaminsky, who scored 28 points for the Badgers in their 64-63 OT win over Arizona in the West regional final.

The junior from Lisle, Illinois with the smooth touch outside and deft moves inside, hit 11 of 20 shots from the field, including three of five from three-point range and three of four from the foul line, leading the Badgers into the Final Four. In 37 minutes of playing time, Kaminsky also collected 11 rebounds, seven of them on the offensive boards, key to keeping the ball alive for the Wisconsin offense and getting more than their fair share of second chance points.

Due to the ruggedly defensive nature of the game, Wisconsin shot just 39.3%; Arizona was only marginally better, at 39.8%.

The Badgers head to Dallas to meet up with the winner of Sunday's Kentucky-Michigan Midwest final in one of the two semi-final games.

The Florida Gators, #1 overall seed in the tournament, ground out a 62-52 victory over the Dayton Flyers, the #11 seed out of the South region. They reach the Final Four and look forward to playing the winner of Sunday's East region final between Michigan State and Connecticut.

DeAndre Daniels' 27 Points Leads Connecticut past Iowa State, 81-76; Michigan, Kentucky, Michigan State Advance

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, March 28, 2014

Coming into the tournament, everyone knew that the Connecticut Huskies were a talented group, but they we're very deep, and few thought they'd advance far, but, with an 81-76 victory over Iowa State in the East region semi-final, they're one step away from the Final Four.

The Huskies, having won any number of games and Big East championships at Madison Square Garden, might have felt right at home in the Big Apple, but junior DeAndre Daniels, who hails from Los Angeles and led all scorers with 27 points, it was a special night.

Daniels blew away the Cyclones by hitting 10 of 15 shots from the field, including a pair of three pointers and snatched 10 rebounds to lead the Huskies into the next round.

The Huskies (29-8), the seven seed in the region, meet up with Michigan State (29-8) in the East regional final on Sunday, after the Spartans took out Virginia, 61-59.

Over in the Midwest region, 8th-seeded Kentucky took out defending national champion Louisville, 74-69, the #4 seed, and #2 Michigan scraped by #11 Tennessee, 73-71.

The Wildcats and Wolverines will go at it Sunday, the winner advancing to the Final Four.

Michael Frazier II Leads Florida to 29th Straight Victory, Elite Eight; Dayton, Arizona, Wisconsin Advance

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, March 27, 2014

Awarded the top seeding in the tournament, the Florda Gators proved their value, disassembling UCLA, 79-68, to advance to the South regional final where they will face the upstart, 11th-seeded Dayton Flyers on Saturday.

Florida established an early lead against the Bruins, led 36-30 at the half and were never headed, cruising to their 29th straight victory, the longest winning streak in the country.

Down 11-8 just six minutes into the game, Florida hit four straight three-pointers - three of them by Michael Frazier II - led 20-16 just 2 1/2 minutes later and held that lead for the remainder of the contest.

Florida's lead would eventually swell to as many as 11 on a few occasions and the Bruins cut it to one point midway through the second half, but the Gators pulled away once again. UCLA could only draw within seven points in the final six minutes as Florida players executed their offense and made free throws down the stretch.

Frazier finished the scoring on a breakaway dunk and was 5-for-8 from beyond the arc, finishing with a game-high 19 points, along with six rebounds and three assists.

On the opposite side of the South bracket, Dayton continued its successful run through the post-season with an 82-72 win over Stanford, the #10 seed in the region.

The West regional final was set for Saturday as #2 Wisconsin hammered Baylor, 69-52, and top seed Arizona handled San Diego State, 70-64.

Friday night's match-ups include Iowa State vs. Connecticut and Virginia vs. Michigan State in the East. The Midwest games are Tennessee vs. Michigan, followed by the blockbuster Louisville vs. Kentucky meeting.

Iowa State Outlasts North Carolina, 85-83, Advances to Sweet 16

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 23, 2014

Even with the loss of a key player - Georges Niang - DeAndre Kane wasn't going to let his teammates and Iowa State fans down.

Kane drove to the bucket and powered in the last two of his game-high 24 points with 1.6 seconds left to play, giving Iowa State an 85-83 victory over North Carolina and a trip to the Sweet 16, where they will meet Connecticut in an East regional semi-final on Friday, March 28.

The Cyclones lost Niang for the remainder of the season in their 93-75 win over NC Central as he suffered a fractured foot, but got big efforts from Naz Long, Monte Morris and Dustin Hogue against the Tar Heels.

Kane's 24 points came off 9-for-18 shooting and a 5-for-7 effort from the foul line. He also had 10 rebounds and seven assists, though his bucket near the end of the game was all that really mattered as the Cyclones overcame an eight-point deficit and outscored the Tar Heels 17-7 down the stretch.

Most of Sunday's slate of eight games went according to plan, with lower-numbered seeds knocking off the higher ones, except in the South region, where #10 Stanford knocked off #2 Kansas, 60-57, and in the Midwest, where #8 Kentucky upset #1 seed and previously unbeaten Wichita State, 78-76.

Tennessee's 83-63 win over Mercer made it a trio for the SEC in the Sweet 16, joining Kentucky and Florida, matching the number in the round by the Big Ten (Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin) and the PAC-12, which has advanced Stanford, UCLA and Arizona.

Baylor and Iowa State are the remaining teams from the Big 12 to advance, and two come out of the American Athletic - Louisville and UConn. Virginia is the only remaining ACC team left in the tournament. The Cavaliers smashed Memphis, 78-60, to advance.

Xavier Thames Nets 30 for San Diego State: Syracuse Out; Wisconsin, Michigan, Michagan St. Lead Big Ten to Sweet 16

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 22, 2014

The Aztecs of San Diego State advanced to the Sweet 16 with a thundering victory over North Dakota State, 63-44.

Xavier Thames led the scoring parade with 30 points on 9-for-19 shooting with four threes.

The Aztecs, #4 seed in the West region will match up with the winner of the Sunday's Gonzaga-Arizona meeting.

Elsewhere, Syracuse, the #3 seed in the South, was upended by #11 Dayton, 55-53; in the Midwest region, #2 Michigan downed #7 Texas, 79-65, making them the third Big Ten team in the Sweet 16, joining Michigan State and Wisconsin.

Jarnell Stokes, Tennessee Make Quick Work of Minutemen, 86-67; Duke, VCU Ousted

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, March 21, 2014

The Massachusetts Minutemen will have plenty of time to think about their brief trip to the NCAA tournament, after Jordan McRae, Jarnell Stokes and the Tennessee Volunteers routed them, 86-67, in their opening game at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC.

The Vols took a 3-2 lead on McRae's three-pointer 1:23 into the contest and never trailed or were tied again, forging a 19-point lead by the break, 41-22, and maintaining their edge throughout the second half.

McRae scored 21 points for the Vols, who won their second straight game in the tourney after knocking off Iowa, 78-65, in the First Four play-in round.

Stokes was impressive, leading all scorers with 26 points and topping the rebounding charts with a game-high 14, four of them off the offensive glass. Tennessee's inside force was 7-for-11 from the field and 12-for-13 at the foul line, the Minutemen finding no answer to his might but to foul him.

The Vols are the #11 seed in the Midwest region and will face Mercer on Sunday.

One of the other big stories of the day came before Tennessee's win, when Mercer, the #14 seed in the Midwest, upset the #3 seed Duke, 78-71, making the Blue Devils the most recent one-and-done tournament victim.

In the South region, the Mountaineers of Stephen F. Austin - the #12 seed - took down #5 seed, VCU, 77-75 in overtime, when senior leader, Desmond Haymond sent the game into overtime, knocking down a three-point shot with three seconds remaining and getting fouled in the act. Haymond hit the free throw to tie the game and contributed another trey in the overtime.

#1 seeds Arizona, Wichita State and Virginia all advanced, joining the overall #1 seed, Florida.

Adreian Payne's Career-High 41 Points Hoists Spartans over Delaware

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, March 20, 2014

A spate of upsets marked the traditional opening day of the tournament, but one team which held its ground was Michigan State, likely because the Delaware Blue Hens had no solutions for senior forward Adreian Payne, who scored a career-high 41 points in the Spartans' 93-78 triumph.

The 6'10" swingman was incredibly efficient in tear up the opponent, hitting 10 of 15 from the field, including four of five from three-point range and an impressive 17-for-17 mark at the foul line. Payne added eight boards and only turned the ball over twice, all in just 24 minutes of court time.

Coach Tom Izzo has his team as well-prepared for the tournament as usual, coming off the championship in the Big Ten tournament last week.

Michigan State, the #4 seed in the East region,will face upset winner Harvard in the next round, on Saturday. The 12th-seeded Crimson disposed of #5 seed Cincinnati, 61-57, essentially blowing up millions of brackets in the process.

Among the other upsets encountered on Thursday were Dayton's 60-59 win over Ohio State in the South region, an 11 over a six, and, West region #12 seed North Dakota State outing #5 Oklahoma, 80-75, in overtime.

Basically, three regions were blown up on Thursday, leaving only the Midwest unscathed, though #5 St. Louis had to come from 16 back in the second half to hold off #12 NC State in overtime, 83-80.

Jarnell Stokes Powers Tennessee in Field of 64 With OT Win over Iowa

College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Tennessee outscored Iowa 14-1 in overtime, earning them a trip to the next round in the NCAA tournament.

Jarnell Stokes, who powered the Volunteers with 18 points and 13 rebounds, made a three-point play with a layup and made free throw 31 seconds into the extra period that turned out to be more than the Vols needed.

Following a bucket by Jordan McRae, he and Anotnio Barton knocked dow nine of ten free throws to complete the scoring for the 78-65 win. McRae led all scorers with 20 points.

The 11th-seeded Vols advance to play #6 Massachusetts in the Midwest region on Friday.

In the other First Four game Wednesday, Cal Poly defeated Texas Southern, 81-69, and will play #1 seed in the Midwest, Wichita State, Friday night.

16 games are on the slate both Thursday and Friday, the action beginning at 12:15 Thursday when South region #6 Ohio State meets #11 Dayton.

NC State Advances on T.J. Warren's 25 Points

College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Day one of the NCAA tournament and already the cream is rising to the top.

T.J. Warren, who led the ACC in scoring this season, popped for 25 points and was nearly unstoppable during the second half, leading North Carolina State to a 74-59 victory over Xavier.

Warren was 10-for-18 from the field and added five rebounds, two assists and three steals as the Wolfpack led nearly all the way and pulled away late. NC State will play the #5 seed from the Midwest region, St. Louis, in the second round on Friday.

In the earlier game at Dayton, Albany topped Mount St. Mary's, 71-64, in a battle of 16 seeds. The Great Danes move on to play #1 Florida in a second round game in the South region, Saturday.

Bracket Basics, Weak, Strong Regions, Play-in Games for the 2014 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship

On Tuesday, 68 teams (yes, what used to be known as "play-in" games are now round 1) will begin the ultimate quest to be named the bast collage hoops team in the land while millions of fans will be checking off winners and losers in the annual bracket madness that is March in America.

The opening game of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship tips off at Tuesday at 6:40 pm, when a pair of #16 seeds, Albany and Mount St. Mary's, meet for the right to be slaughtered in the South bracket by #1 Florida in the second round.

This game is about as consequential - unless you really believe you're going to take a billion bucks off of Warren Buffett - as a tail feather in a chicken coop. Never has a #1 seed fallen to a 16-seed. If you must make a choice between the 16-16 Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers (winners of the Northeastern Conference tournament) and the 18-14 Albany Great Danes - winners of the America East tournament with a Scooby-Do look-alike as their mascot - flip a coin and cross the winner off in the next round.

Both Albany and Mt. St. Mary's finished fourth in their respective conferences.

The second Tuesday night game has a little more intrigue to it, as the teams are set down as 12-seeds, the winner moving on to face St. Louis in the Midwest region. North Carolina State meets up with Xavier at roughly 9:10 pm.

One could confidently give the Wolfpack the edge over the Musketeers in this meeting, but, as any veteran of bracket busting understands, almost nothing is certain come March. NC State was 21-13 with a 9-9 mark in the ACC, and they knocked off Syracuse in the second round of the conference tourney. They also feature ACC player of the year, T.J. Warren, who is a match-up nightmare.

The 21-12 Musketeers ended up tied for third in the watered-down Big East, not exactly a vote of confidence. NC State is a 2 1/2-point favorite.

On Wednesday, another pair of first round games feature Cal Poly vs. Texas Southern in a meeting of 16-seeds, and Tennessee vs. Iowa in the late game.

The winner of the first game goes on to face #1 seed in the Midwest, Wichita State, the only team in the tournament with an undefeated record, at 34-0. The Shockers were the only team to make the grade out of the Missouri Valley conference, but still look like a #1 that will not lose to a #16. Rinse and repeat the structure from Tuesday night and cross out the team on the line below Wichita State.

The Volunteers played well enough in the SEC tournament to make Florida a little nervous, though eventually falling in the semi-final. Iowa was eliminated early in the Big Ten tourney, but somehow gets into the mix because they're from a power conference. Despite a 9-9 mark against Big Ten teams, the Hawkeyes passed the eye test of the tournament selection committee. Either that, or the school needed the extra dough. Tennessee is a 1 1/2=-point favorite. The winner heads on to meet UMass in Raleigh on Sunday.

With three "play-in" teams all advancing into the Midwest conference, the obvious question is whether that makes that bracket stronger or weaker. Since two of the teams will be 11-and-12 seeds, it would suggest that the bracket is stronger, though many will claim that Wichita State is the weakest #1 in some time. The bracket also includes #2 Duke, #3 Michigan and #4 Louisville, only one of which captured their conference championship - Louisville. If there's anything glaring and obviously wrong in this year's brackets, it is Louisville on the four-line. They won the American Athletic conference tournament with ease and, if successful in their first two games, will have Wichita State in a regional semi-final, unless #8 Kentucky or #9 Kansas State rises up and smites the Shockers first.

Toughest among the regions is probably the East, where the 1-6 seeds are Virginia, Villanova, Iowa State, Michigan State, Cincinnati and North Carolina, and it doesn't get much easier after that, with teams like St. Joe's, Harvard and Providence in the mix.

If you're looking for a natural Final Four, try this on for size: Midwest - Louisville, West - Wisconsin, East - Iowa State, South - Florida. Other than Wisconsin, each of those teams won their conference tournament, though in the case of the West region (another in the running for weakest region), the only reliable conference champion was Gonzaga, winners of the WCC, seeded at #8. The Zags may get #1 seed Arizona in their second game, and recall that the Wildcats were knocked off by UCLA in the PAC-12 title game.

In the Final Four, this scenario has Louisville beating Wisconsin and Florida whipping Iowa State, though either of those games could easily go the other way. Picking an ultimate winner between those four teams is a tough task, though most would side with Florida. However, the SEC was not very deep, Louisville comes out of another weak conference, the American Athletic, making the case for the Cyclones or Badgers, each from power conferences.

For the record, CBD will take Iowa State to win it all.

ESPN offers a nice bracket look, adorned by Hooter's Girls, here, plus a link to their tournament challenge, one of the more popular online bracket contests.

Ryan Harrow's 37 Not enough for Georgia State; Ragin' Cajuns, Florida, Virginia, St. Joe's, Michigan State Punch In

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 16, 2014

Maybe it's fitting or just a reminder that effort isn't everything this time of year, as Ryan Harrow's 37-point effort was not quite enough in Georgia State's, 82-81, overtime loss to the Ragin Cajun's of Louisiana-Lafayette in the Sun Belt championship game.

In a "win-and-you're-in, doubt-and-you're-out" situation, Harrow went 13-for-22 from the field, missed all three of his attempts from beyond the arc and was 11-for-12 at the foul line.

Despite his star performance, Harrow's misses in clutch time were decisive, as he missed a jumper with 15 seconds left in regulation that allowed the Cajuns to tie the game, and again misfired with five seconds left in OT for the win. It just wasn't in the Cards as Louisiana-Lafayette advanced to the NCAA tournament.

In the ACC, Virginia dusted Duke, 72-63. St. Joe's topped VCU to capture the Atlantic-10 title, 65-61.

Florida outlasted Kentucky, 61-60, to capture the SEC crown, and, Michigan State thumped Michigan, 69-55, in the Big Ten.

Let the madness begin...

Kyle Anderson Leads Bruins to PAC-10 Title over Arizona; Five More Championships Up on Sunday

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 15, 2014

Kyle Anderson, UCLA's sensational sophomore, has been putting up big numbers and double-doubles all season, but may have saved his best game for the PAC-12 championship, captured by the Bruins with a 75-71 victory over Arizona.

Anderson dropped in 21 points and swiped 15 rebounds to lead the Bruins, dishing five assists while committing just one turnover. It was his 14th double-double of the season and his first in the conference tournament. The Bruins knocked off Oregon and Stanford before gutting out the win over the #4 Wildcats.

While UCLA receives the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, Arizona will also be going, as they have a 30-4 mark on the season.

Other big-name teams punched their ticket to the big dance on Saturday. Iowa State won the Big 12 championship, coming from behind to defeat Baylor, 74-65; Louisville took the American Athletic title with a 71-61 win over Connecticut.

Providence upset #14 Creighton, 65-58, to capture the Big East championship, and New Mexico knocked off San Diego State, 64-58, in the West Coast conference final, their third consecutive conference championship.

Just five more automatic bids need to be awarded on Sunday before the selection committee finalizes the seedings for the NCAA tournament brackets.

At 1:00 pm EDT, #7 Duke meets #6 Virginia to decide the ACC title, Saint Joseph's plays #23 Virginia Commonwealth in the Atlantic-10, and Louisiana-Lafayette faces Georgia State for the Sun Belt championship.

At 3:00 pm, Kentucky and #1 Florida meet to decide the SEC crown, and, at 3:30 pm, #8 Michigan and #22 Michigan State battle for Big Ten bragging rights.

Russ Smith Drops In 42 for Louisville; Big 12, PAC-12, American and Big East Championships on Tap for Saturday

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, March 14, 2014

Russ Smith isn't the shy or reticent type.

On Friday night, in Louisville's 94-65 victory over Houston in an American conference semi-final, he was completely unreserved, pouring in a career-high 42 points for the fifth-ranked Cardinals.

As often as Smith's exploits have defied description, this single-game extravaganza surely belonged in the range somewhere between Russ-diculous or Russ-tastic, terms reserved only for the Louisville guard.

Hitting 14-for-22 from the field with five of seven falling from beyond the arc, Smith augmented his extraordinary exploit with a 9-for-10 tally from the foul line, adding three assists and a trio of rebounds.

The win sent Louisville to the American tournament final on Saturday to face the Connecticut Huskies, 58-56 winners over Cincinnati in the other semi-final contest.

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Gearing up for a full weekend of championship hoops, Saturday offers some of the best match-ups of the season, with a number of the major conferences - and a slew of minor ones - deciding championships. By Sunday afternoon, all 32 automatic bids will have been spoken for, allowing the NCAA tournament committee to release the seedings precisely at 6:00 pm EDT.

The American, Big 12, PAC-12 and Big East will crown champions on Saturday. The action begins at 1:00 (all times EDT) when top-ranked Florida meets Tennessee in an SEC semi-final and Pitt faces Virginia in an ACC semi. Ohio State meets Michigan in a Big Ten semi-final, and, at 3:00, Duke faces NC State in an ACC semi-final.

After (22) Michigan State squares off against (12) Wisconsin in another Big Ten semi, the first championship games of the day begin at 6:00 pm when #20 New Mexico meets #8 San Diego State for the West Coast conference title, UCLA faces #4 Arizona for the PAC-12 crown, and Connecticut and Louisville begin their quest for the American championship.

At 8:30, Providence meets #14 Creighton to decide the Big East, and at 9:00 pm, Baylor meets up with Iowa State to determine the champion of the Big 12.

Creighton Advances in Big East Tourney with 35 From Doug McDermott

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, March 13, 2014

Doug McDermott was at it again Thursday night, dropping in 35 points to lead the Creighton Bluejays to an 84-62 win over DePaul in the Big East tournament.

McDermott was 14-for-22 with seven three-pointers, five rebounds and three assists. The Bluejays established a sizable lead early in the first half and never looked back in their Big East opener at Madison Square Garden.

Other key games included another contest at MSG, where Seton Hall clung to post-season hope with a 64-63 victory over #3 Villanova, the top seed in the Big East tournament.

Other tournament results:
Big 12: Iowa State 91 Kansas State 85; Kansas 77 Oklahoma St. 70
American: Louisville 92 Rutgers 31; Cincinnati 61 UCF 58

Jeremy Ingram Powers NC Central in MEAC Tourney; 13 of 32 NCAA Auto Bids Awarded

College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Conference tournaments are in full swing across the country, but only one squad secured a berth on Wednesday, that honor belonging to American University, taking the Patriot League championship with a 55-36 victory over Boston U.

American's entry to the big dance brings to 13 the number of teams with automatic bids, of the 32 that will eventually be awarded.

Of the 32 games played on Wednesday, only a handful featured teams with hopes of reaching the NCAA promised land. One of those was North Carolina Central, which cruised through their MEAC schedule with a 15-1 mark and slammed Howard, 92-46, in the quarterfinal of the conference tourney.

The Eagles emptied their bench in the blowout, with 11 different players scoring, all led by senior Jeremy Ingram, who poured in 30 points on 9-for-12 shooting, making five of six three pointers and hitting seven of nine from the charity stripe.

The 46-point win was the largest in MEAC tournament history, and sends the Eagles to a semi-final match-up against the winner of Friday's meeting between Norfolk State and Savannah State.

Sam Dower Leads Gonzaga to 13th WCC Title; 12 Teams In Tourney

College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Sam Dower scored 20 points, going 10-for-16, and snagged 13 rebounds to lead Gonzaga to the West Coast Conference tourney championship with a 75-64 win over BYU.

The Bulldogs (28-6, 15-3 WCC) won their 13th WCC title since joining the conference in 1979. They will be in the NCAA tournament field for 16th straight season.

Including the Bulldogs, four more teams punched their tickets to the big dance. A total of twelve teams have now received automatic invitations.

North Dakota State upended IPFW, 60-57, capturing the Summit League; Milwaukee took down Wright State, 69-63, to wrap up the Horizon League championship; and, Mount St. Mary's took down Robert Morris, 88-71, in the Northeast Conference title game.

Taylor Braun Leads North Dakota State in Summit Semi; 8 Teams Capture Bids for NCAA Tourney

College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, March 10, 2014

The Bison of North Dakota State advanced to the Summit League final with an 83-48 trouncing of the Denver Pioneers Monday night in Sioux Falls.

The Bison led all the way, held Denver to 15 first half points and took a 27-point advantage into the break, powered by Taylor Braun who scored 18 of his game-high 28 points in the first 20 minutes.

Braun was 7-for-9 from the field, four of five on threes and 10-for-12 from the foul line, adding five rebounds and three assists in his 32 minutes of floor time.

The Bison advance to play IPFW - a 64-60 winner over South Dakota State - in the final.

Two more teams punched their tickets to the NCAA tourney on Monday. Manhattan outlasted Iona, 71-68, for the MAAC title; Delaware slipped by William and Mary, 75-74, in the Colonial tourney final; and, Wofford captured the bid from the Southern Conference with a 56-53 victory over West Carolina in the tourney final.

That brings the total of teams qualifying for the NCAA tournament to eight. Harvard, Wichita State, Mercer, Eastern Kentucky and Coastal Carolina had already nabbed bids by Sunday.

NC State Finishes at 9-9 in ACC after T.J. Warren Explodes for 42 Points vs. BC

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 9, 2014

North Carolina State will rest its case before the NCAA tournament committee with a 9-9 mark in the ACC after T.J. Warren scored 42 points to lead the Wolfpack to a 78-68 victory over the Boston College Eagles.

While TVs across America would surely be enhanced having the Wolfpack and Warren flashing in the tourney, it may be a stretch to get them there as they finish the regular season tied with Maryland and Florida State, meaning that nine teams would have to go from the ACC if all teams with at least a .500 record are included. A couple of wins in this week's ACC tourney might do the trick to separate out the deserving from the simply pretending.

Warren, a superb athlete who may be deserving of ACC player of the year honors, was 14-for-23 from the floor and 14-for-17 from the stripe to go with 13 boards, three assists, three steals and a blocked shot.

NC State finished with a 19-12 record overall, which shows better than Maryland's 17-14 or Florida State's 18-12 marks, both of which lost to the Wolfpack earlier in the season.

Doug McDermott's Career-High 45 Lifts Creighton over Providence

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 8, 2014

Just when it appears that Doug McDermott can do no more to secure college basketball's player of the year honors, he goes beyond the pale with an over-the-top performance such as his 45 points in Saturday's 88-73 victory over Providence.

McDermott hit 17 of 25 shots against the Friars, scoring more than half of his team's points, including 5-for-7 from beyond the arc and six of nine from the foul line. The senior forward continues to lead the nation in scoring, upping his average to 26.5 points per game.

Saturday's tour de force featured seven boards and a pair of assists, and was a season-and-career-high for McDermott, eclipsing the 39 he had against Villanova on February 16 and the 44 he put up against Bradley in the 2011-12 season. His output helped the Bluejays snap a two-game losing streak and solidified a second-place finish in the Big East for Creighton at 14-4. Interestingly, 16-2 Villanova's only conference losses were to Creighton. Both will have first round byes in the upcoming Big East tournament.

McDermott also became just the eighth player in Division I history to reach 3000 points in his career, making his final appearance at the CenturyLink Center an historic one, passing Oscar Robertson and Hersey Hawkins into seventh place on the all-time scoring list.

Sean Kilpatrick, Titus Rubles Propel Cincinnati Past Memphis, 97-84

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, March 6, 2014

Thursday was senior night in Cincinnati, and Sean Kilpatrick made the most of it, pouring in a season-high 34 points to help the Bearcats overpower Memphis, 97-84.

Fellow senior, Titus Rubles, chipped in a career-high 24 points, the two upperclassmen combining for more than half of Cincinnati's points.

Kilpatrick was 11-for-18 from the field and 10-for-11 from the foul line; Rubles went 9-for-13 and converted six of six at the stripe.

The win put the Bearcats in a tie with Louisville atop the American conference with one game remaining.

Russ Smith Leads Louisville over SMU, 84-71, with 26 Points

College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, March 5, 2014

#11 Louisville took another step towards at least a share of the American conference title, knocking off #18 SMU, 84-71.

The Cardinals are 14-3 in conference play, with one game left - Saturday, March 8, against Connecticut. Only Cincinnati, at 13-3, with two games remaining - March 6, Memphis; March 8, at Rutgers - has a chance to tie or beat out the Cardinals for the regular season championship.

If anything, Louisville is underrated, even at #11 in the AP Poll, and their deserving superstar, Russ Smith, gets less attention than other big-name players in the college basketball universe.

Smith had another of his routinely awesome outings on Wednesday against the Mustangs, leading all scorers with 26 points while nabbing six rebounds, handing out five assists and making two steals. Going 9-for-15 from the field, Smith was a perfect 6-for-6 from outside the three-point arc, as Louisville knocked down 13 treys.

Smith scored 22 of his points in the second half, at one point making three straight threes in a span of just a minute-and-a-half early in the second half. Despite his hot shooting, the Mustangs managed to stay close, but a later outburst from Smith of seven points in just over a minute increased the Cardinals' lead from seven to 12, and essentially put the game away.

Elsewhere, #3 Arizona managed a 73-69 win at Oregon State, #4 Duke scored just six points in the final five minutes, losing, 82-72, on the road at Wake Forest. #8 Kansas powered past Texas Tech, 82-57; #9 Wisconsin topped Purdue, 76-70; #10 San Diego State rallied past UNLV, 73-64; and #17 St. Louis was beaten by Dayton, 72-67.

#1 Florida Trounces Gamecocks Behind 37 from Michael Frazier

College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Having already clinched the SEC regular season title, #1 Florida demolished South Carolina Wednesday night, 72-46, as sophomore Michael Frazier scored more than half the points for the Gators en route to a career-high 37.

Frazier made 11 of 18 three-point attempts and was 12-for-21 overall, adding three rebounds, an assist and four steals. The Gators improved to 17-0 in the SEC and 28-2 overall.

Elsewhere in the Top 25, #7 Syracuse was beaten again, their third loss in their last four, 67-62, by Georgia Tech; #13 Creighton fell, 75-63, at Georgetown; Baylor dropped #16 Iowa State, 74-61.

#25 Kentucky ended a two-game skid with a 55-48 win over Alabama, and #12 Michigan routed Illinois, 84-53, clinching the Big Ten regular season title.

T.J. Warren Pours in 41 as Wolfpack Devours Panthers, 74-67

College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, March 2, 2014

The middle of the ACC is still wide open, with as many as four teams vying down the stretch for wins, seeking to qualify for the NCAA tourney.

One such team is NC State, which needed a win over a quality team to make a statement, and the message was delivered as T.J. Warren scored a career-high 41 points to lead his Wolfpack to a 74-67 triumph at the Peterson Events Center in Pittsburgh, a very tough place to win.

Warren was sensational, knocking down 16 of 22 shots from the floor, three of five from three-point range and six of seven at the foul line. The 6'8" sophomore, fourth-leading scorer in the nation, added five rebounds, four steals, three assists and a blocked shot to his game resume.

The Wolfpack (18-12, 8-9) closes out the regular season at home, against Boston College.